Thread: Tomorrow is the day

Congratulations. So far you've done better then I did on my first shave. It looked like I had slept on a pillow made of glass the first time. Nicks and burn happen. Go slow and think about what your doing and in no time you'll get better results.

There's three bits of advice I could give which helped me, and might help you. First, try practicing with something other then the razor. A butter knife, a shavette without the blade inserted, anything which will allow you to practice the strokes and passes without the risk of hurting yourself. This really helped me get a better shave, and to incorperate my non dominent hand into the process. I used to practice while watching TV.

Secondly use really light pressure. I didn't beleive it when the reccomendations was passed my way, but the less pressure I use, the closer the shave seems to be. And it makes my skin happy.

Third, it sounds like you might have dry lather. I'm still figuring out how to get a GREAT lather, but I found that if the blade doesn't seem to glide smoothly, adding a bit of water to the foam and reapplying the lather makes for a better shave.

Experiment and have fun learning and playing with the new toys.
Good luck and keep us posted.

oh yeah, and for the razor case, you could try a toothbrush travel case. you might get a snugger fit, and they are water proof.

Originally Posted by Freyr

Two nicks, one spot where razor burn is coming through. All from operator error born of enthusiasm. The razor I purchased to learn with has a square tip and so I gouged myself twice both minor and stopped bleeding faster than any time I have cut myself with a gillette.

Letting the razor dry sitting in front of me right now, mineral oil is the next stop.

Observations: A tremendous amount of focus is required to maintain a constant blade angle, even over relatively flat spaces (cheeks, where both my gouges are) With the 5/8ths I'm using the mustache is not bad, the chin is a bitch and I am not prepared. Some razor burn on my neck because I got a little over enthusiastic and tried a second pass across the grain, the other way (my neck grows from both sides into a line just right of center)

My neck, although I took two passes is still pretty stubbly, (is that a word?) I will need to figure out what I am doing there before I take a shot at my chin. Cheeks are great, Jason's 6-1 aftershave (98% aloe) is a good thing and my face feels alright.

Although I am able to produce a ton of lather with the Mitchel's Wool Fat Soap is isn't very slick, am I doing something wrong? Maybe my angle is too steep? It seemed when I went with a closer angle it glided without pulling, and it took off hair, simply not as much as something closer to 30 degrees.

Verdict: I was a little over anxious. I should have stuck to just the side burn instead of moving on to the rest of my face, but it was going so well.